Now you know the main viewpoints that guide psychologists in their work. But what do psychologists actually do with their time between breakfast and dinner?

To most people, the word psychologist conjures up an image of a therapist listening intently while a client pours forth his or her troubles. Many psychologists do in fact fit this image, but others do not. The professional activities of psychologists generally fall into three broad categories: (1) teaching and doing research in colleges and universities; (2) providing health or mental health services, often referred to as psychological practice; and (3) conducting research or applying its findings in nonacademic settings, such as business, sports, government, law, and the military (see Review1.3). Some psychologists move flexibly across these areas. A researcher might also provide counseling services in a mental health setting, such as a clinic or a hospital; a university professor might teach, do research, and serve as a consultant in legal cases.

Most psychologists who do research have doctoral degrees (PhDs) or doctorates in education (EdDs). Some, seeking knowledge for its own sake, work in basic psychology, doing “pure” research. Others, concerned with the practical uses of knowledge, work in applied psychology. The two approaches are complementary: Applied psychology has direct relevance to human problems, but without basic psychology, there would be little knowledge to apply. A psychologist doing basic research might ask, “How does peer pressure influence people's attitudes and behavior?” An applied psychologist might ask, “How can knowledge about peer pressure be used to get college students to quit binge drinking?”

Research psychology is the aspect of psychology least recognized and understood by the public. Psychology has never had a U.S. postage stamp commemorating the discipline or its founders, unlike dozens of other fields, including poultry farming and truck driving. Bemoaning this fact, Ludy Benjamin (2003) argued that it was evidence that the public “has minimal understanding of psychology as a science and even less appreciation for what psychological scientists do” or how psychological research contributes to human welfare. We hope that by the time you finish this text, you will have a greater appreciation for what research psychologists do and for their contributions to human welfare. Here are just a few of the major nonclinical specialties in psychology:

• Experimental psychologists conduct laboratory studies of learning, motivation, emotion, sensation and perception, physiology, and cognition. Do not be misled by the term experimental, though; other psychologists also do experiments.

• Educational psychologists study psychological principles that explain learning and search for ways to improve educational systems. Their interests range from the application of findings on memory and thinking to the use of rewards to encourage achievement.

• Developmental psychologists study how people change and grow over time physically, mentally, and socially. Some specialize in childhood issues; others study adolescence, young adulthood, the middle years, or old age.

• Industrial/organizational psychologists study behavior in the workplace. They are concerned with group decision making, employee morale, work motivation, productivity, job stress, personnel selection, marketing strategies, equipment design, and many other issues.

• Psychometric psychologists design and evaluate tests of mental abilities, aptitudes, interests, and personality. Nearly all of us have had firsthand experience with one or more of these tests in school, at work, or in the military. The video Asking the Tough Questions 2 will help you appreciate the broad range of interests and applications psychologists pursue.

Psychological practitioners, whose goal is to understand and improve people's physical and mental health, work in mental hospitals, general hospitals, clinics, schools, counseling centers, and private practice. Since the late 1970s, the proportion of psychologists who are practitioners has steadily increased. Practitioners now account for over two-thirds of new psychology doctorates and members of the American Psychological Association (APA), which is international despite its name, and is the largest association of professional psychologists in the world.

Some practitioners are counseling psychologists, who generally help people deal with problems of everyday life, such as test anxiety, family conflicts, or low job motivation. Others are school psychologists, who work with parents, teachers, and students to enhance students' performance and resolve emotional difficulties. The majority, however, are clinical psychologists, who diagnose, treat, and study mental or emotional problems. Clinical psychologists are trained to do psychotherapy with severely disturbed people, as well as with those who are simply troubled or unhappy or who want to learn to handle their problems better.

In almost all states, a license to practice clinical psychology requires a doctorate. Most clinical psychologists have a PhD, some have an EdD, and some have a PsyD (doctorate in psychology, pronounced “sy-dee”). Clinical psychologists typically complete 4 or 5 years of graduate work in psychology, plus at least a year's internship under the direction of a licensed psychologist. Clinical programs leading to a PhD or EdD are usually designed to prepare a person both as a scientist and as a clinical practitioner; they require completion of a dissertation, a research project that contributes to knowledge in the field. Programs leading to a PsyD do not usually require a dissertation, although they typically require the student to complete an extensive study, theoretical paper, or literature review.

People often confuse clinical psychologist with three other terms: psychotherapist, psychoanalyst, and psychiatrist. But these terms mean different things:

• A psychotherapist is simply anyone who does any kind of psychotherapy. The term is not legally regulated; in fact, in most states, anyone can say that he or she is a “therapist” of one sort or another without having any training at all.

• A psychoanalyst is a person who practices one particular form of therapy: psychoanalysis. To call yourself a psychoanalyst, you must have specialized training from a psychoanalytic institute and undergo extensive psychoanalysis yourself. At one time, admission to a psychoanalytic institute required an MD or a PhD, but this is no longer true; clinical social workers with master's degrees, and even interested laypeople, are often now admitted.

• A psychiatrist is a medical doctor (MD) who has completed a 3-year residency in psychiatry to learn how to diagnose and treat mental disorders. Like some clinical psychologists, some psychiatrists do research on mental problems instead of, or in addition to, working with patients. In private practice, psychiatrists may treat any kind of emotional disorder; in hospitals, they treat the most severe disorders, such as major depression and schizophrenia. Although psychiatrists and clinical psychologists often do similar work, psychiatrists, because of their medical training, are more likely to focus on possible biological causes of mental disorders and to treat these problems with medication. Unlike psychiatrists, most clinical psychologists cannot write prescriptions at present. (In the United States, only a select number of states have given prescription privileges to psychologists who receive special training.) Psychiatrists, however, are often uneducated in current psychological theories and methods and are unfamiliar with current research in psychology (Luhrmann, 2000).

Other mental health professionals include licensed clinical social workers (LCSWs) and marriage, family, and child counselors (MFCCs). These professionals ordinarily treat general problems in adjustment and family conflicts rather than severe mental disturbance, although their work may also bring them into contact with people who have serious problems—violent delinquents, people with drug addictions, sex offenders, individuals involved in domestic violence or child abuse. Licensing requirements vary from state to state but usually include a master's degree in psychology or social work and 1 or 2 years of supervised experience. (For a summary of the various types of psychotherapists and the training they receive, see Review1.4.) As if this weren't complicated enough, thousands of people claim to be specialists in treating all kinds of problems, from sexual abuse to alcoholism; no uniform set of standards regulates their training. Some may have taken nothing more than a brief “certification” course.

Many research psychologists, and some practitioners, are worried about the increase in the number of counselors and psychotherapists who are unschooled in research methods and the empirical findings of psychology, and who use untested or ineffective therapy techniques (Baker, McFall, & Shoham, 2008; Lilienfeld, Lynn, & Lohr, 2014). Many therapists have been trained in freestanding professional schools that are unconnected to university psychology departments. Some of these schools offer a quality education, but others are designed to produce mental health professionals who may or may not know much about psychological research or its importance to sound clinical practice. These poorer quality programs are turning out increasing numbers of ill-prepared graduates (Peterson, 2003).

Review1.4

Types of Psychotherapists

Many practitioners, for their part, argue that psychotherapy is an art and that training in research methods is largely irrelevant to the work they do with clients. There are differences in training and attitudes between scientists and many therapists. These differences contributed to the formation of the Association for Psychological Science (APS). The widening gap between scientists and practitioners, along with increased demands by insurers for evidence that psychotherapy is demonstrably effective, has motivated several prominent clinical psychologists to call for evidence-based treatment and collaboration between researchers and clinicians, in hopes of bridging the gap and improving patient care (Kazdin, 2008).

Psychology has expanded so rapidly that the American Psychological Association now has more than 50 divisions. Some represent major fields such as developmental psychology or physiological psychology. Others represent specific research or professional interests, such as the psychology of women, the psychology of men, ethnic minority issues, sports, the arts, environmental concerns, gay and lesbian issues, peace, psychology and the law, and health.

Today, psychologists contribute to their communities in about as many areas as you can think of. They advise utility companies on ways to get customers to conserve energy. They consult with companies to improve worker satisfaction and productivity. They establish programs to improve race relations. They do basic and applied research on ways of reducing conflict, locally and internationally. They strive to understand and prevent acts of terrorism. They advise commissions on how pollution and noise affect mental health. They do rehabilitation training for people with physical or mental disabilities. They educate judges and juries about eyewitness testimony and false confessions. They assist the police in emergencies involving hostages or disturbed people. They conduct public opinion surveys. They run suicide-prevention hotlines. They advise zoos on the care and training of animals. They help coaches improve the athletic performance of their teams. And those are just for starters. Is it any wonder that people are a little fuzzy about what a psychologist is?